VALDOSTA, Ga.- Coming off a 3-1 season-opening weekend on Feb. 3-4, 2023, and four matchups in Columbus that were postponed due to unfavorable weather conditions last weekend, the Valdosta State softball team opens both the 2023 home slate and Gulf South Conference play with Mississippi College this weekend at Steel's Diamond at Blazer Park. The series will consist of three games with a doubleheader taking place on Feb. 18 at 2 p.m., and a weekend finale taking place on Feb. 19 at 1 p.m.
VSU swept Palm Beach Atlantic in a Friday doubleheader on Feb. 3 with a 4-2 victory in the opener and a 7-5 victory in the nightcap to win the opening day series. The Blazers also split a two-game doubleheader with Nova Southeastern on Saturday, Feb. 4 with Nova taking the first game 6-1 and the Blazers scoring a comeback victory in the second, 11-6. For the weekend, junior Morgan Hill hit .357 on 5 of 14 from the plate with four runs scored and two stolen bases while junior Katie Proctor hit 4 of 13 with one double, four RBIs and four runs scored. Junior Taylor Macera averaged .286 on 2 of 7 from the dish with one run, two RBIs and one stolen base. VSU hit .213 for the series with 23 hits, 23 runs, four doubles, two home runs and 19 driven in. The Blazers were also five of five in stolen base attempts.
On the mound, senior Samantha Richards went 1-1 in 15.2 innings with a 3.13 ERA, allowing 22 hits, eight runs- seven earned, walking two and fanning 12. Junior Taylor Barrett went 1-0 in 7.2 innings with a 5.48 ERA, allowing 11 hits, six runs- all earned, three walks and struck out two. Junior Mia DeAngelis went 1-0 in 3.1 innings with a 4.20 ERA, allowing one hit, three runs- two earned, walking five and striking out three. The team allowed 36 hits, 19 runs- 17 earned, 11 walks and 17 strikeouts as a whole.
Mississippi College is coming into the weekend with an 8-2 record and is under the direction of head coach Brooke O' Hair, who is in her 17th season with the Choctaws. Over her career, O' Hair has an overall record of 447-286 with the MCU softball program and is 8-13 against the Blazers since 2015. Valdosta State leads the all-time series with the Choctaws, 20-13, with the Blazers losing the last matchup in Mississippi 2-1 in the 8th inning. VSU has won five of the last seven in the series and is 8-3 in Valdosta, with a series sweep, Feb. 27-28, 2021.
Individually, the Choctaws are led at the plate by McCall Lee who is batting .486 on 18 of 37, scoring 12 runs, 4 doubles and 11 RBI. Kamryn Eaton is also a notable name at the plate for the Choctaws, batting .464 on 13 of 28, scoring 14 runs, six doubles, four home runs and 16 RBI. Bailey Camryn is the Choctaws leader on the mound, holding a 6-0 record with one complete game. She has a 1.46 ERA over 33.2 innings pitched, accumulating 15 strikeouts, 26 hits, and nine walks.
Following this weekend, VSU is scheduled to host Flagler on Tuesday (Feb. 21) for a doubleheader beginning at 4 p.m. The Blazers continue at home Thursday, Feb. 23 at 4 p.m., to face Embry-Riddle in a doubleheader. VSU then is scheduled to close the week with a three-game at Delta State next weekend.
